Oh. Yes. Being a late 70's runner, this warms the cockles of my heart like nothing else: Nike Vintage. To quote the site:
...We've revisited our original styles and crafted them to look 30 years old–fresh out of the box. And it's all there, almost to the stitch. 1970s-grade nylon. Weird Swooshes. Aged laces. Weathered foam. And, of course, that velvety suede-like suede.
I'm partial to the Daybreak, since my Dad had a pair. The color choices presented here are new–they only had one look back in the day as far as I remember: tan with a bright orange swoosh (which, incidentally, I don't see available on the site...weird). Now I know what I want for my birthday. (It's coming up, in case you want to know...*hint hint*...)
I'll talk more about this book soon.
I started up (yet) another Flickr group, Vintage Science (hmmm...I'm detecting a theme here). Mainly because I was trying to find some old science book-type stuff on Flickr and noticed that there wasn't one place to feature them all. Behold, another Flickr group! Taking a nod from fellow vintage-lover Paula Wirth's excellent group series (see Vintage Cookbooks, Vintage Advertising, and Vintage Drugstores, to name a few), I decided to start a group featuring all those oh-so-dated science books that we were forced to study and learn in grade school. Looking for 40's, 50's, 60's, and 70's science books, as well as children's books that had a science theme to 'em (like space, astronomy, physics, anatomy, etc.). Join in on the fun!
Inspiring artists:
I'm in love with the artwork of Matte Stephens. I mentioned him on Drawn! and I'll mention him here. He's that good. Go directly to his Etsy shop and buy one of his prints. You won't be sorry. Another reason to love Matte's work is that he's a big fan of midcentury modern design. He even started up a blog devoted to it: Modern Design 901. Love love.
Robert Hardgrave (aka Farmer Bob) paints with authority. His freeflowing landscapes are something to behold; I'm sure they're even more impressive up close and in person. Check his gallery and his Flickr.
Currently enjoying the work of Italian illustrator Olimpia Zagnoli. Fun characters with nice linework. I'm glad to see that she's crossed the threshold from paper and/or computer screen into brick and mortar walls. She just recently finished her first wall! She collaborated with a friend and it looks great. Be sure to check her Flickr while you're at it.
Click to read. And laugh.
Hilarious. Do yourself a favor and go back and read 'em all. Drawn by Scott Campbell. Love his watercolor work combined with his use of irregular line and fun character designs. Recently featured in Geek Monthly.
Scott recently was one of the contributing artists to Hickee, an on-going comic series featuring indie comic artists, headed up by fellow LAIKA-ian, Graham Annable. If you're not familiar with Graham's work, you're in for a treat. The amount of personality he's able to get out of the subtlest of looks is amazing. Mostly in the eyes. (Check his Grickle Things blog.) I can see why Henry Selick grabbed him to work as storyboard artist on CORALINE. Wonderful stuff.A big, fat post featuring LAIKA, PDX and NW artists is coming soon. To coincide with my updated blogroll. (Sorry it's taking me longer than expected. I keep finding new links! So sue me.)
This entry reminded me. I found this Flickr account:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.flickr.com/photos/linzie/
I think you'll like her stuff.
Hey Ward, do you have a copy of The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments (1960)?
ReplyDeleteCuz I do :)
I'll bring it in next time.
The illos are pretty straight-forward realistic, no funky googie stuff, but it IS a vintage science book!
The Matte Stephens pic reminds me of the work of another contemporary artist who has been influenced by mid-20th century illustration and design-- Tim Biskup. Tim does some excellent work-- for anyone who has not already done so, I recommend checking him out.
ReplyDeleteHere is a link:
http://www.timbiskup.com/artwork/digital/
BTW, I just discovered your blog, and it looks pretty cool. I'll be doing some more exploring here!
Best--
Rick
I am very curious about the "...big, fat post featuring LAIKA, PDX and NW artists..." Post soon! :)
ReplyDeleteI like Tim Biskup's work and think he is an amazing painter but I think he is more influenced by Disney of the 1950s more than design. Or that is what I got from his site.Im more into the design of the era Irving Harper/Alexander Girard- Ben Shahn type stuff.
ReplyDeleteAs a shameful shoehound, I'm lusting after those Daybreaks. I had a pair, too.
ReplyDeleteI just got my spiffy new Nike Free 5.0 IDs. I love them, love them, love them. They're supposed to simulate barefoot training, but they have great support. So, it will be a while before I can justify getting any more shoes, but now the Daybreaks are affixed to my prefrontal cortex and won't come loose. Thanks, Ward.
Love the comic, too. So much to check out in this post.
Hey, thanks for stopping by, Matte! Honestly, I never really associated your work with that of Biskup's, even though I can see some sort of connection there. But your work speaks to me more through your sense of design. The characters and colors really appeal to me.
ReplyDeleteLaura -- Funny you should bring up Linzie. I love her work! She's one of my contacts on Flickr. I should mention her here. Thanks for reminding me!
Amy -- not sure if I've heard of that book. Would love to see it.
Tanja -- It's currently a work-in-progess. Still trying to gather all the links so I can coincide the post with my updated blogroll (which is hideously out-dated).
Sparky -- ha! You know you want those Daybreaks, man!
Thanks for introducing me to Olimpia Zagnoli!
ReplyDeleteAs for the Nikes, my brother had 8 different colors of this particular shoe! This was his favorite!